Author Archive

Energy Working Group: April 25, 2012

Wednesday April 25, 2012 from 7pm-8pm
Energy Working Group
Guest Speaker: Connie Leeper
Julie D, Valerie W, Emiley J, and Al B

Announcements
Guest speaker from NC WARN to discuss the Annual Rate Hike Bill

Proposals and Discussion Topics  

  • Rate Hike Bill

Presentation and proposal to GA against rate hike bill
Make a Press Release for GA to approve and disperse.
Banner drop- Discussion of logistics

  • Radio Drama

Plan next creative writing events.
How can we create an avenue for people to participate in creative writing online and submit their writings?

  • Canvassing

Reorganize for Annual Rate Hike Bill and organize to relaunch Canvassing!
Relaunch date

  • Media

Powerpoint presentation( Julie)
Outreach Groups
Greenpeace, NC WARN, Western NC Physicians for Social Responsibility, Appalachian Voices
General Media Discussion

  • Movie nights

The Last Mountain- Saturday May 26, 2012 6pm-8pm

  • Fundraising

Next meetings

  • Energy Working Group Sunday April 29 from 2pm-3:30pm Glenwood Coffee and Books
  • Creative Writing Wednesday May 9 from 7pm-9pm Sessions Bar
  • Movie Night: The Last Mountain Saturday May 26 from 6pm to 8pm

 

ArtFest!

This Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.  (The 11th, 12th, and 13th.)

 

WEDNESDAY

early early morning:* Paper Crane Distribution/Hanging (time TBA, contact Julia Kimmel)

7:30-8:30am:* Know Your Rights Teach-In @ Courthouse Downtown

11:30am: Domestic Coordinates (Julianna and Kristin) and Poetry Reading @ Festival Park

12-3pm: Hanging Art @ Wash Pub

4pm: Wash Pub Show: “Dirty Laundry”

 

THURSDAY

10am-12pm: Blank Paper Happening @ Tate Street

12:30pm: Voices from A People’s History @ Government Plaza

4:00pm: Guerrilla Poetry Reading@ BofA Patio Downtown

6:30-9:00pm: Potluck and Mural Painting @ The Corner of Yellow Locust and Mystic Oak (could there possibly be a more poetic intersection?)

 

FRIDAY

12:30pm: “Breaking Up With Capitalism” @ Bank of America DOWNTOWN

4pm: Celebration at Al’s with many happenings: “Occupy the Moment, Learn about the Movement” @ Glenwood Coffee and Books

 

*=rain plan TBA

 

 

You are fodder for the factory and battlefield, choose to be free!

A crowd of us marched today from the Greensboro Public Library on Church Street, to Governmental Plaza to raise awareness about unemployment in Greensboro and to start the conversation about how we can build a better economy.  Once at Governmental Plaza, we heard from several speakers, including Christine Chaplik, who had prepared a speech which she agreed to publish here.

We are here today to shine a light on the fact that, at minimum, 14 million Americans are unemployed and at least 26 million are un or under employed, Many people’s jobs have been out sourced to other countries.

And now, some Americans are outsourcing themselves to other countries in order to be able to work.

Big business has no intention of helping us, their only concern is the bottom line, not the lives of the people who have been destroyed by these corporate policies of greed, bad business decisions and pollution. Congress won’t help us, they have another master, and it’s not we the people. They blame the dismal economic situation regarding lack of jobs on lazy people who want to live off the system. They bail out their buddies and refuse to help citizens who are losing every thing they have worked for all their lives due to illegal foreclosure practices. There is just no end to their greed. Unemployment insurance is a vital important lifeline and if millions lose unemployment benefits, it will only compound the human suffering that is sweeping through our cities, our suburbs,and our rural areas as a result of the Great Recession.

They teach us of the vital importance of other lifelines – Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid are even more important during hard times.

They want us to beg for crumbs, those of us that are working are experiencing stagnant wages or decreased earning potential. Decreased benefits, or no benefits. In the mean time, according to the Institute for Policy Studies, CEOs in 2010 received pay at a ratio of $375 to $1 and yet refuse to pay anymore in taxes instead trying to shift the burden to the middle class, the poor, disabled and retired. Anyone but them!

These corporations are receiving billions in taxpayer subsidies using it to pollute our air and soil and contaminate our water extracting fossil fuels through mining, drilling or hydraulic fracturing and refuse to accept any responsibility for poisoning our planet and all who live on it. Congress refuses to cut these subsidies but will not vote to extend unemployment benefits for millions out of work through no fault of their own.

So, we can’t depend on corporations or the government to dig us out of this hole. Who can we depend on? We have to approach it from a solution point of reference. Stop feeding the machine.

We can depend on ourselves, occupy our lives.

How do we do this? How do we occupy our lives? By bypassing corporations and their polluting services. Our food supply is approximately 80% genetically modified frankenfood. Grow your own or buy locally from those that do. Save rain water, water is going to be a serious issue in the near future, learn now to conserve. In Southern Florida they used cisterns on the top of their houses to collect rain water. For those that can, open your own environmental friendly businesses, supplying your communities with needed products and services. Support those businesses. If you are knowledgeable about running a business, help someone else. Use credit unions or small banks to obtain financing or other banking needs, Fire the big banks!

Duke Power is requesting an 18% rate increase for residential services, less for businesses. People are out of work, struggling with diminished wages if they are working, and they want to increase our rates, while making millions in profits every quarter? Their reason for requesting this rate increase to build more coal plants to continue to pollute our environment. So they want us to pay them more money to kill us. In this case we need to occupy our energy. Fire Duke Energy!

Recently I saw a video about a school in India called the Barefoot College. It is a place where uneducated, illiterate woman, some who don’t even speak the language, go to learn to become solar engineers. They are taught by watching and doing. It is a six month course and when they complete it they return to their communities and install solar power giving their communities, in some cases, their first experience with electricity. If they can do it, we can do it.

They also are advocates of rain water harvesting, finding it the best solution to areas that experience droughts routinely. Mahatma Gandhi’s central belief was that the knowledge, skills and wisdom found in villages should be used for development before getting skills from outside. He also believed that sophisticated technology should be used in rural India, but it should be in the hands and in control of the poor communities so that they are not dependent or exploited as it leads to replacement.

Sounds to me like he was telling the people to occupy their resources. We need to occupy our food, our jobs our energy and resources. It might not be tomorrow, but we can work our way toward making corporations and big banks obsolete.

When I first moved to Greensboro, there was a sign painted on a building in my neighborhood. If left such an impression on me I never forgot it. It said: You are fodder for the factory and battlefield, choose to be free!

We are the 99%, choose to occupy your lives, your freedom.

11/8 General Assembly

11/8 GA

Report Backs:

Media Group: the voter guide leak. Asks for autonomy for certain issues.

Foreclosure demonstration on 11/11 at Bank of America on Green Valley: Moratorium on Foreclosures
and integrated Zombie march.

Banks have been engaged in criminal activity and have been working with states to be granted immunity in exchange for monetary relief. The demonstration will highlight the crimes of banks and push Attorney general Roy Cooper to not grant immunity.

Trip to Raleigh will be highlighted at demonstration and will attempt to work with Occupy Raleigh.

Unemployed/Underemployed organizational meeting on Thur 11/9 @ 6:00pm. There are 14,000 unemployed/underemployed in our area. Try to gather support.

Teach-in on Greensboro Massacre on Thur 11/9 from 3pm-5pm @ interestion of Everette & Mcconnell Rd.

Last call for stuff from Todd Warren’s trailer.


Occupy Charlotte holds demonstrations every Saturday at Bank of America. Should/could we join up?

Final Duke Energy hearing in Raleigh 11/28 at 1:00pm. Attn. Gen. Roy Cooper will be in attendance. Should we attend?

Occupy Spartanburg / GOP debate on Friday.

Choreography and song lesson for Saturday Bank of America demonstration before demonstration. 2:00pm on Saturday. Zombie makeup session will coincide.

Al mentioned that 1,000,000 people have closed accounts at major banks.

OccupyUNCG is acting in solidarity with Occupy Greensboro but is not a part. OccupyUNCG
will be hosting a speak out at “the rock” on campus. Monday, 2:00pm.

“What is the big picture?” for Occupy Greensboro: to be discussed in entirely at Sunday GA.

Proposals:
Moveon.org: “we are 99%” day. Gather at failed business/crumbling bridges/schools to reveal local symptoms of a failed economy.
This is surrounding issues of the super committee and its pending announcement. Moveon.org wants to host a demonstration in response to neglected areas on 11/17.

Proposal is for temporary alliance with moveon.org (Guilford chapter) to organize and demonstrate the 11/17 event.

Issues:
Concern over moveon.org agenda and political leaning.
Concern with becoming attached to moveon.org in public view. “birds of a feather”

Ideas:
We can support actions without having to support entire organizations.
Ensure all signs have “occupygreensboro.org” emblazoned.

CONSENSUS REACHED: Occupy Greensboro will appear and members can aid in organizing 11/17 demonstration.

Media Autonomy:

GA’s happen on set time. News and press releases happen in realtime. In order for the media group to facilitate the wishes of the GA consensus, they asked to be granted autonomy in three instances:

1.    Event Announcements or reiterating/releasing previously consensed upon material or instances. Reaffirming consensus to readdress issues. (CONSENSUS REACHED)
2.    Correcting published mistakes or inaccurate reporting (CONSENSUS (semi)REACHED, pending further converstation.)

3.    Website moderation against trolles, spam, etc… (CONSENSUS REACHED, publish a Terms of Service which reflects the ground rules applied to GA. These are the rules which will define our online media.)

Point 1: Knowledge about facts and consensus of the GA should be clearly and accurately reflected in GA notes. The media group should refer to these notes and the consensus decisions held therein when creating content for press releases.

A point was raised to ensure press releases remain subjective and in no way alienate members of Occupy Greensboro or the public in general.

Point 2: The conversation about media group answering corrections or that of individuals answering corrections passed on the basis that the conversation continue at Sunday’s GA.

Point 3: Website moderation will not engage cencorship, but will uphold the ground rules defined by the GA. There is to be a Terms of Service posted on the website which reflects those rules. Oppresive speech is defined and not tolerated.

It was agreed that the leaked voter guide and media issues in general highlights a need to discuss open/more frequent communication between the working groups within themselves and the greater GA in general. This discussion will continue at Sunday’s GA.


“Jobs for Justice” meeting on Tues. 11/15 at CWA Hall. A coalition of community and labor organizations will be speaking to help build relationship with community. OccupyGreensboro will be in attendence. CONSENSUS REACHED.


Greensboro Mural Project will be hosting a discussion at the mural on Sat. at 1:00pm. The mural is on Lindsay Street at the Greensboro Children’s Museum. The mural’s subject is “What would healthy Greensboro look like?” and the topic will explore how Occupy Greensboro fits into the mural theme. CONSENSUS REACHED


Art & Literature Magazine
A new working group will form to create an Occupy Greenboro Art & Lit magazine. The first meeting of the group will discuss logistics. All submissions are welcome. CONSENSUS REACHED.

11-1-11 Meeting Minutes

**Tuesday’s GA began the important discussion of how we proceed after our time at the YWCA comes to an end.  Due to the small number of people who attended, consensus was taken on some points, to get the temperature of the group that was present, but it was agreed that many important issues were raised which require broader discussion.  The sense from the meeting on Tuesday was that discussion will continue on these issues on Friday.

Summary of Consensus Points:

  • Agreement to postpone finding a new camp site.  Agreement to use Al’s bookstore in the meantime (Glenwood Coffee and Books at Grove and Glenwood Streets).
  • Agreement to continue discussion of camping issues at Friday’s General Assembly.  (It was asked that it be emphasized that if you care about these issues, there will be more discussion, so please come on Friday 6:30-8:30.)
  • Agreement to continue the discussion of how to include homeless folks once the YWCA site is decamped.  Please bring proposals to Friday’s General Assembly.
  • Agreement that tomorrow will be clean up day at camp.  Please come volunteer any time before tomorrow’s march.
  • Agreement that December 10th is a tentative date for the Underemployment March, but also that the march group will take into account questions about the date, and come back to the group later.
  • Agreement to have a celebratory dance party Friday after the General Assembly.

 Minutes

Dates and times for meetings and events are in bold.
Needs for specific materials are underlined.

 

ANNOUNCEMENTS

There’s a group working on actions around foreclosures.

  • They met with a local housing advocate recently, who works with Guilford County Self Help.  They work with people to avoid foreclosure through loan modification.
  • The group also met with Jeff Thigpen, our Register of Deeds.  He’s working on something called the Robo-signing controversy.  He’s 1 of 2 Register of Deeds in the nation who’s working on suing banks over this convroversy.
  • The group recognizes that both of these folks/organizations are good at what they do.  And that we have heat, fire, and people power, so they’re working on what we can do to support them.
  • There’s a rally on the 11th at Bank of America on Green Valley.
  • Group is working with local housing advocate to find a family to work with, who is facing foreclosure, so that we can protest and work to stop the foreclosure.  There are already some people lined up.
  • Part of the idea is to build strategies that could be replicable around the nation.
  • Two meetings: Strategy Planning Thursday evening @ 8:00 pm at Al’s Bookstore
  • Also Tuesday morning @ 8:30 am at Spring Garden Bakery
  • Question about what Robo-signing is.
  • Answer: It’s a small part of the mortgage crisis.  Banks traded titles… There are examples where someone supposedly signed documents, but there are twenty different signatures that all look different.  So people aren’t actually signing the documents, and this is something that used to be a long process, but now they’re doing thousands of these per day.  So Jeff Thigpen is looking for a way to stop foreclosures through this.
  • Suggestion of an information pamphlet about robo-signing.  Response that that’s exactly what the group is talking about on Thursday evening.
  • Jane Parker and Will Shuford have experience with this stuff, but the group is also looking for folks that have finance backgrounds to do a teach-in.

The art team is meeting at 2:15 on Friday, at camp, to prep folks for the Zombie March. 

  • They will be doing zombie makeovers.  Please bring corporate clothes that can be torn up.  But the art team will also bring some, and will be bringing fake blood, etc.
  • The march is at 4 pm on Friday.  Walking down Summit to Greene, past Wells Fargo, down February One, stopping at Bank of America, have flyers to hand out.
  • Also the idea of eating money, eating deeds, having people dressed in cardboard houses running away from the zombies.
  • There will be credit union flyers to hand out with info.
  • Question about why zombies.
  • Answer: The idea is that corporate zombies are feeding on our resources.  It’s also in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street, which has done similar things.
  • Also there’s been a news article about a foreclosure firm hosting parties where people dress up as homeless people—a reason to protest.

Credit union event being organized for November 5th  @ 1-3 pm. 

  • Host a credit union forum in the Nussbaum room at the Library.  Event about how can we move our money, what are the beneifts of credit unions.
  • Not a lot of response from credit unions so far, probably because they’re usually closed on Saturdays.  But the event will happen regardless.

Morning of November 5th @ 11 am there’s a MoveOn event at Bank of America to protest foreclosures.  They need help marshalling people, it would be great to get people out there.

Underemployment March

  • Meeting to discuss underemployment march @ 1:00 pm on Sunday, location TBA, tentatively Spring Garden Bakery (was going to be Green Bean, but because of recent controversy, going to move locations).
  • Proposal for March on December 10th.

Tomorrow is a march in support of the General Strike responding to police brutality at Occupy Oakland.  March starts at 5:30 in Governmental Plaza.  Will wind up here at the camp.

  • Dinner tomorrow after the march is a potluck.  Please bring food!!  Working groups will be meeting.
  • Leaflets printed up for tomorrow’s event.  Look like $100 bills, have a breakdown of wealth in the US, “Top 1% by the numbers” on the back.  There’s a PDF for these, and the message on the back can also be changed for future events.

Announcement that we really need help cleaning up the kitchen area.

 

PROPOSALS

  1. Al from Glenwood Coffee and Books has offered his site to be a central location for Occupy after we decamp from the YWCA.  His offer does not include camping or cooking, because he is not zoned for either.  He’s offering the group access to both the front and back rooms, from 9 am to 9 pm daily.  It’s warm there, and there’s coffee.
  2. We need to have the camp area cleaned, please come by tomorrow morning/afternoon and volunteer.  See Tina.  Let’s leave the area cleaner than we found it.
  3. The YWCA camp is closing Sunday at Noon.  Proposal that we wait on finding a next spot for camping, and give ourselves time to talk about what we’ve done well, and what our next steps are.
  4. December 10th as the date for the Underemployment march.
  5. Dance party on Friday after the GA to celebrate, to include a discussion of safety/consent.

 

DISCUSSION OF PROPOSALS

PROPOSALS #1 and #3 Discussion opened up for postponing any new camping site discussion.  (And discussion included proposal to use Al’s, since proposals were related.)

  • Suggestion that we do an action or event before decamping here, and that there’s a press release to the media about what we’re doing, so that people know it’s not over.
  • Many people in occupy have homes, it’s cold, people might not have insurance and can’t afford to get sick, so these are practical matters to consider in a discussion of camping.
  • Concern that we don’t want to undermine folks who are looking for next camping sites, but aren’t at this meeting, don’t want to undermine them by making decisions tonight.
  • We need some way of promoting ourselves, maybe a potluck at Al’s.
  • Decamping is not a retreat, we’ve had three weeks of continuous action, it’s been tremendous, but there’s also been a tremendous outpouring of energy.  There’s a next phase that we have to be prepared for.  We should have strategies and be intentional about our next step.

2 ideas to test for consensus:

  1. Postpone discussion until someone who’s been looking for new sites can come
  2. Postpone finding a new camping site until we can reflect and plan

Point of process:  Add that even if we decide we’re not ready to make a decision, we’re having the conversation.

Test for consensus on #1.

One down thumb: Why do we need to wait for someone?  If we agree to postpone finding a new camp site, do we need to wait for those who are looking for new sites?

Responses:

  • There was a guy on Friday who was bottomlining the search for new sites, and he had stated he wouldn’t be here tonight.
  • There’s a group working on new camp sites, and they’re meeting tomorrow at 2 pm.
  • The next GA is larger, more people will be there, more opportunity to give an opinion.
  • Support for the proposal to move back into Al’s, but awareness that a bunch of people aren’t here tonight.  Lots of people are at UNCG doing an event.

More discussion:

  • Idea that we could work toward a sense of the GA on this issue, which we could take into the next GA, aside from making any decisions.
  • Totally fine with that idea, but it’s also time sensitive.  Re-emphasize that we’re decentralized, so people could camp if they want to.  What’s great about Al’s is it gives us, like the encampment, a where and a when to meet.  So he’s offering us a middle ground.
  • Regrouping is not a bad word, it’s about what worked and what didn’t.  It takes time and money to run a camp.  We could have a smaller permanent encampment.
  • Question for clarification, is Al’s place being offered as a space for meetings?
  • Yeah, central place for meeting, also for sign making, storing tools, a completely open space.  Only reason we couldn’t do camping or cooking is the zoning.
  • Liking the idea of regrouping.  When we first started that first march was an action that brought in more people.
  • It’s great Al has made space available, maybe we could also do one GA per week in a different location, to make GAs more accessible.
  • We could do short actions and encampments, it’s really cold, and we need strategies to deal with that.  Is that the energy we want to use?  We don’t have Wall Street here.  They have a really distinct reason for camping.
  • We could camp for shorter times.  Hook up with other local occupy groups and camp with them, ways to build more solidarity with them.
  • Corporations and banks are praying for cold weather.  This is a strong movement with external activity, it’s hard to maintain that level of activity when trying to stay warm.  Making visible the process of foreclosing on people in December in the cold.
  • Idea of something US Uncut did, walking into Bank of Americas and handing out pamphlets to customers.
  • Having events, specific events.  It’s really hard to feed people.
  • Although liking the idea of camping, even if we’re not here, doing a bunch of stuff.  Maybe having a ride share network to get to future GAs.
  • We need to know if we have other places to camp.
  • Agreement to continue discussion on Friday.  (Consensus)
  • Postponing camp we are allowing to move forward.  Also consensus to use Al’s temporarily.  (BUT, there will be more discussion of this on Friday.)
  • Question, folks who are homeless, how will they be able to follow the movement after decamping?
  • Response, we’re decamping because we’re coordinating with the YWCA, and they have a Winter Emergency program for women, which is in cooperation with organizations like Urban Ministry, it’s important that they have this space be safe for them.
  • Folks who are using this space for shelter.  What about homeless folks who are occupying?  How are they going to keep up?
  • A lot of homeless people here who have questions, want to get involved, and enjoy camp life.  They have a lot of good things to offer.  Figuring out how to involve them in actions.  Assisting people who are homeless.  What do we need to do to get info to people who are homeless?
  • 2 things.  When we close down camp on Sunday, we’ll still be deciding what to do.  It’s a great point about homeless folks, and folks from Occupy are working with IRC, maybe that’s a way to keep people updated on next steps and how to plug in.
  • Movement to put this on the agenda for next meeting—continuing presence.
  • Maybe people can give rides to homeless folk.  We don’t want to leave people out.
  • Ways to communicate.  Flyers or info handed out at Center City Park or somewhere to communicate with homeless folks.  Some means of phsyically disseminating information.
  • Idea of other locations for GAs, maybe the IRC would be one, to directly involve homeless folks.
  • If we want a way to have a continued presence, folks have talked about getting tired and going home, homeless people don’t have that luxury.  And they specialize in that kind of tenacity.  They’re already occupying Greensboro.
  • Consensus approved to continue this discussion on Friday.  Bring proposals.

PROPOSAL #2, Camp cleanup.

  • Wednesday morning until end of march is cleaning time.  Please bring rakes and brooms.
  • Question:  When is trash day?
  • Movement to have a meeting about trash situation, can we take trash somewhere else.
  • Idea that we could go to Summit Station and ask about a dumpster.  Don’t put trash in library dumpsters that are near YWCA, we know that for sure we can’t do.
  • Bottom liner for trash cleanup tomorrow:  Maia  336-392-6059
  • Can everybody take a couple bags tonight.
  • Emphasize that at Friday’s GA we’re going to talk about these things—issues of camping/decamping, etc., so if you care about these issues, there will be more discussion, so please come.

PROPOSAL #4 December 10th for Underemployment March.

  • Happens to also be International Human Rights Day.
  • Is it a holiday?
  • Agreement that December 10th is a tentative date, but the march group will take these things into account.

PROPOSAL #5 Dance party.

  • Can we make it a cleaning party and a dance party?
  • Perhaps have a local band.
  • Security needs.
  • Police are around and know what’s going on.
  • We can just do it the same way we do all our other events, which is to assume good intent.
  • Julia will bottomline dance party: juliamkimmel@gmail.com.
  • Dance party needs speakers.
  • Question: We’re decamping Sunday at noon, so will GA still be here?
  • Response:  Yes, GA will be here after tent removal before noon, and Val’s revisioning session will be here too.
  • This was a great meeting, can we just clap for that?  There was applause.  Meeting closed.
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